The Center Theatre announced that they are asking for volunteers to help communities keep in touch while we are all keeping our distance. According to Patrick Myers, the Center Theatre executive director, the Theatre is working to help people stay connected  and hopefully bring a little joy into their daily life.

Hospitals across Maine are steeling themselves for a possible spike in patients with the coronavirus by stocking up on equipment and freeing up beds and workers. But while those efforts are critical from a public health perspective, they could make it harder in the long run for rural hospitals to sustain their current operations when many of them are already struggling to pay the bills. 

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland announced March 27 that Holy Week and Easter services will be online and not open to the public due to the regulations currently in place in Maine as a result of the COVID-19 crisis.

The board of directors for Three Rivers Kiwanis of Milo/Brownville have decided to suspend Wednesday meetings through April 27 due to COVID-19.

Secretary of State Matthew Dunlap announced Friday, March 27 that many credentials issued by the Bureau of Motor Vehicles that expire within the current state emergency period will be extended.

University of Maine Cooperative Extension will offer a series of free one-hour online home gardening discussions starting at 9 a.m. on Monday, March 30. Additional sessions are scheduled each Monday at 9 a.m., Wednesday at noon and Thursday at 6 p.m. through April 23.

The Dexter Knights of Columbus made a donation to benefit the K-12 special education students of SAD 46, as a result of last fall’s Tootsie Roll Drive.

Gov. Janet Mills and Commissioner of the Department of Administrative and Financial Services Commissioner Kirsten Figueroa announced that the state will extend the deadline for Maine income tax payments from April 15 to July 15. The change aligns with the federal government’s recent extension of the federal tax filing deadline to July 15.

The University of Maine Cooperative Extension Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program has created a new video series with recipes that are easy to make at home while keeping nutrition in mind.

As hospitals across the country enter a period of turbulence because of the novel coronavirus, the Brewer-based health care system that includes Northern Light Mayo Hospital in Dover-Foxcroft and Northern Light C.A. Dean Hospital in Greenville has appointed its chief operating officer to serve as the system’s next head.

A mild winter is giving emergency management officials one less thing to worry about: The spring flooding risk is reduced in New England.

Rep. Norm Higgins, I-Dover-Foxcroft, left, and Sen. Paul Davis, R-Sangerville presented a Legislative Sentiment to Ethelyn Treworgy and Jeanne Hamlin in memory of Charles Edwin Treworgy.

U.S. Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine and Angus King, I-Maine announced that 18 health centers throughout Maine have been awarded a total of $1,083,790 to address screening and testing needs, acquire medical supplies and boost telehealth capacity in response to this coronavirus pandemic. Among the recipients is HOMETOWN Health Center (Sebasticook Family Doctors), which has been awarded $55,522.

From 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Friday, March 27 Trisha Smith, home horticulture aide at UMaine Cooperative Extension Piscataquis County will be hosting a live Zoom conference version of the new “Fourth Friday Plant Clinic.” The conference may be accessed through PC, Mac or smartphone at https://maine.zoom.us/j/146882821.

Despite all the changes and uncertainty, the Thompson Free Library (TFL) in Dover-Foxcroft continues to offer resources and information to our patrons and the community especially through our Facebook page and website (thompsonfreelibrary.lib.me.us).

All five school districts in the region and most across the state have extended closures for at least another month. Closures initially slated to last for two weeks until the end of March will now last through the normally scheduled week of April vacation.

University of Maine Cooperative Extension created a user-friendly webpage featuring links to recently completed resources related to COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus.

With the novel coronavirus reaching pandemic levels, everyone has been stockpiling for the Centers for Disease Control’s recommended social distancing, self-isolation and self-quarantine, which could last for several weeks. That’s led to stores running out of products like hand sanitizer, hand soap and toilet paper.